Past the Point of No Return
by trina26
Summary: A passionate woman and her powerful lover... will there be a chance for them? KZ In the middle of revising, hopefull will be up soon!
1. Chapter 1

**Chapter 1: Just another day**

Sighing, Karigan wearily placed the last annual report for hay consumption on the top of the pile. 'Thank the spirits', she muttered, 'any more and you would begin to think I was one of my father's accountants, not a green rider". She stood and stretched muscles tight from too many hours of paperwork. She mulled over her options for the remaining hour off. In the end, the root of her need to become a rider gave her direction. Karigan pocketed an apple and headed in the direction of the horse pastures.

"Condor!" she whistled, "Here boy." The horse in question ambled over in his own time and stared Karigan down. "I know," she murmured guiltily, "I promise I haven't neglected you on purpose, I really have been busy". Condor seemed to accept this apology, or more accurately, the offering of a bribe and whickered in her ear before giving her a gentle nudge. Karigan laughed and once he had finished the apple, saddled him up. As they began to canter around the practice fields, she felt all the concerns of the last few days plus a few she hadn't realised she was carrying melt away with the warmth of the sun on her back. The feeling of freedom she experienced when riding with her special friend always seemed to make the cares of the world matter just a little bit less. After the warm up and fresh air had put both of them in a better mood, she walked Condor into the stables to give him a quick groom and change his water bucket. Just then the bell rang to signal midday and she swore. She hadn't realised how late it was! Leaving the rest of Condor's care to a stable hand, Karigan raced to the practice grounds and arrived just as the last bell rang, with not a breath to spare.

"Girl', growled Drent, 'you're late!"

Karigan mumbled an apology, which Drent ignored. "No use apologising with words girl, it won't save you in a fight. Do an extra 5 laps with double the weights." Karigan stared at him then trudged off to collect her apparatus, knowing that to disagree with Drent would mean even more weights and laps. She began running and was cursing Drent a quarter of the way though for changing their practice time to midday bell, the hottest part of the day. Builds character, he had said. Well, she thought to herself grimly, I happen to like my character as it is. By the end, Karigan was weak, hot, irritated and dripping with sweat. She stood there mute as Drent prepared the next exercise. Grinning evilly at her, he held up a pair of iron torture devices designed to keep her feet hobbled together and slowly pulled them tighter than usual. "Now, let's have some fun girl…"

Karigan's legs trembled. Her fingers trembled. She was pretty sure even her ears trembled. She did not know how she had managed to reach the Rider's Barracks from the practice yards. The distance had seemed as far as an eternity. She collapsed into a bath that some thoughtful rider – probably a thoughtful, young male rider – had readied for her. Groaning at the joy of beginning to feel human, Karigan cleaned herself then rested her sore muscles in the heat. She woke to find the bath on the colder side of warm and heaved herself out. Once she was dressed, she headed for Captain Mapstone's study as per her orders.

* * * * *

Captain Mapstone hid a smile at the look of Karigan's face. 'I don't think I've ever seen someone so happy when ordered on an errand to Mirwell Province" she thought. 'Maybe it has something to do with Drent!' Of course Karigan was ecstatic; a week on the rode with herself, the horse and the star studded night sky. How could any rider wish for more than that? And of course, it also helped tremendously that Drent would not be there to torture her on a daily basis. She didn't know if it was her imagination, but it seemed like he took extra pleasure in training her and pushed her far harder than any of his other students. Karigan bowed to her Captain, "Certainly, Captain". The captain nodded briskly. "Good. Be prepared to ride at dawn tomorrow. It should be a simple ride. Send these dispatches to Lord Timas, liaise with Beryl and report anything unusual." Karigan noticed the emphasis the Captain placed on the word 'should' and she barely restrained herself from pointing out that not all of her rides ended up like a mystical fantasy; that was, of course, until she remembered that they did.


	2. Chapter 2

**Chapter 2: Just another Errand**

Three days had passed. Three long, lovely days of quality time with Condor, restful thoughts and beautiful views of the countryside as she wound her way to Mirwell Province.

'Well, not too restful,' she reminded herself with a mirthless smile as she stoked the fire. Her mood had considerably darkened over the last year to the point where her friends had first tried to comfort her, then given up and kept out of her way. She tried; oh, how she tried. She would put on a smile, talk to her friends when she had time, try and join in the fun her fellow riders got up to. But it was so difficult for them to understand. Her last few years had been filled with terror, magical happenings, unpleasant truths about her family that shocked her to her core, constant brushes with death, deep, cutting wounds both physical and mental and then worst of all, the unasked for love of…but these thoughts were best to ignore. She no longer knew who she was. The woman in the mirror staring back was becoming more different with each day that passed.

Each rider had his or her own share of danger at some point. That's what made the call so hard for family and loved ones to deal with. But none of them, not even Captain Mapstone, could begin to comprehend what Karigan had confronted, the burden that lay upon her delicate shoulders, or the depth to which she was scarred. She was damaged far beyond repair. Her friends, her loved ones and her colleagues just could not see it. But better that she bear the burden of the lot if it protected her friends from ever experiencing anything like she had...or would…

Which once again drew her mind to the future. Over the last few months her mind had slowly begun to accept the reality of her current situation. She most likely would never have a chance to heal because she would probably die. How soon she did not know; how far had Mornhaven been sent to the future…how long was a piece of string? Nevertheless, Karigan was in the process of making peace with the fact that she would play a major part in his downfall and that she would most likely not survive.

Karigan sighed. It seemed that her survival instincts were not impressed with her logic, which made the whole making peace concept much harder. If only she had more time! And if only she had not begun this train of thought, for it always led her to the same destination and here she was again. If only, in these dark moments of her life, maybe her last few moments, she could have the man that she…loved… by her side. Karigan choked on a sob. It was useless to think of this. She held her head higher and forced down each emotion and tear. She was so tired. She was so terrified. She was sick of knowing that the future rested on her shoulders. And she had had enough of King Zachary, his torturous words and looks, and his marriage to Estora.

"Enough!" she whispered, "enough."

Just then, the smallest rustle in the undergrowth caught her attention. Condor stood stock still, his ears raised. "Easy boy," she murmured softly, staring at the spot where she thought she had heard the noise, easing her saber out of its sheath. The forest was full of sounds as anyone would expect but Karigan, who had spent a good deal of her life on the road either as a rider or a merchant, knew when something was out of place.

For a moment they tensed as the forest became silent.

Then out of the blackness, two massive creatures stampeded into her campsite. Condor neighed loudly and reared. The first monster grunted in pain as a deadly hoof found its mark, and turned to bludgeon the horse. Karigan grabbed hold of Condor's mane and passed her hand over the golden brooch on her breast and the world became a darker shade of grey. The creatures seemed confused as if they could sense their prey even though they could no longer see them. They stood their ground, whirling their clubs in powerful arches around and almost taking off Karigan's head. Soundlessly, she ran to the closest one and plunged her saber into its underbelly, swerving quickly to avoid the massive body falling her way as well as the liquid oozing out its belly.

One left. Karigan stood panting near the tree and plotting her next move while the remaining monster tried to attack the now visible Condor. It was exceptionally risky taking on _one _without some form of support; to deal with its furious partner was nearly impossible. 'Think' she whispered to herself. Then an opportunity momentarily presented itself.

She plunged herself into firelight and visibility once more. The animal was close enough to notice her and with a howl lunged towards the fire. Karigan ran back into the darkness again, and the sudden disappearance of its prey momentarily stalled the mite. This was the moment Karigan had been waiting for. With not a second to spare, Karigan gave a grunt and heaved her sword into the belly of the mite and once again leapt to the side as it fell on its back. Grateful to be alive, she sagged against the nearest tree, the drama of the night taking its toll.

Dully, she stared at her sword, thinking that she really ought to clean it before Drent yelled at her. Just as she was about to wipe it on the grass she straightened immediately. 'Water!' her mind shrieked. In the heat of the battle, she had not noticed the juice on her leg but now that her heart had calmed down, the annoying sting she had ignored during the fight became an excruciating pain radiating down her leg. She cried out, stumbling to a stream she had filled her waterskin with earlier that evening. She plunged her entire lower half in, hoping the strong current would force most of it off. The water was instantly soothing and helped with most of the pain. But from previous experience with these monsters, eagles and moonlit Elven glades, she knew that she was in deep, deep trouble.

Sure enough, when she finally reached her camp and sat by the fire to take stock of the damage, she cried with dismay at the extent of the damage. It had burnt through most of the skin on her left thigh and some of her right thigh as well. 'Curse the spirits', she grumbled, 'why is it always me and in the middle of the night'. She grabbed her last remaining clean shirt and ripped it into strips to protect the damaged skin.

Once completed, she quickly reviewed her options. She knew she only had a small window of time before the poison worked its way into her veins and she needed to be near help when that happened. She looked either way down the road; owing to the slow pace and small distance they had traveled each day, she was far closer to the castle than she was to her next town and the healing help there was infinitely superior. Her indecision gone, she quickly readied Condor after checking that he had not been harmed during the fight.

Just as she suspected, the companion she had learnt to deeply love was ready to ride and full of spirit; he was, after all, bred to be a messenger horse. She mounted and grimly noted that she was already beginning to feel the effects of the mite's blood. 'It would be very helpful if one of the Eletians decided to show up now' she half whispered, half wished, to her companion. They were about to move off when she heard more mites calling for the rest of their herd. 'Ride,' she shouted to Condor as the first one emerged from the forest.

She cloaked them with visibility as Condor galloped towards her king.


	3. Chapter 3

**Chapter 3: Just another wound**

Karigan knew she was in big trouble. Condor had been galloping for what felt like an eternity and she had long ago lost track of their location, trusting in her horse to find the way home whilst she clung to him, hovering on the edge of her consciousness. The pain had become a throbbing fire that seemed to consume her entire body and she dripped perspiration from a raging fever. Karigan knew that she must reach the castle healers within the next candle mark or so, or they would not be able to help her. Her remaining strength began to dwindle and moaning, she gripped tighter as she felt her body begin to slip off Condor.

Condor raced up a never-ending, bone jarring hill and suddenly, she gasped. There stood the castle! Condor somehow managed to gallop even faster than when they had begun their journey only a little while earlier. She wrapped his reins around her wrists, knowing that weakness would most likely find her before they had reached the castle gates. Condon pushed his way through the thronging night crowd, which was not that difficult considering he was all muscle and fiercely protective of his rider. Shouts were heard all round as they warned those up ahead to move out of the path of the crazed horse. Karigan felt her vision dimming just as they reached the castle gates. A smaller door next to the castle gates was quickly opened when the guards recognized which horse it was, but with shouts of surprise they leapt out of the way as Condor continued his run straight through the castle doors. Much later, Karigan would remember thinking that this was not normal behaviour even for her horse and vaguely recall a mass of dim, green, ghostly shapes urging Condor on…

Noble ladies screamed and fainted and the men cried in indignation at the sight of Condor flying through the halls to the audience room. Karigan felt her horse tremble to a stop and not a moment too soon; she lost her battle with the fever and moaning, felt the last vestiges of reality collapse around her.

* * * * *

Laren stifled a yawn at the thought of the long day that had past, speaking to citizen after citizen in the audience chamber. At one point she had taken pride in her place by the kings side during these sessions; now, most of the complaints they heard were not about land disputes or pig numbers, but magic happenings throughout the kingdom. These were not questions the king and his councilors could answer because they were, simply, out of their depth. It was frustrating to turn so many people away with little more than 'Thank you for bringing us your concerns, we are doing everything we can'. She could tell it strained Zachary even more than herself, as his face became stonier with each petitioner he could not help.

Suddenly, her attention refocused sharply. There were cries in the halls and Weapons instantly surrounded their king, whilst others headed in the direction of the disturbance. A horse raced through the doors at a blurring speed and stopped instantly in front of the king, as if he had hit an invisible wall. With a cry of recognition, Laren raced past the weapons even before they realized who it was.

'Karigan!' she cried. She saw Karigan moan and fall off Condor, her tied wrists making her hang off his side like a tortured prisoner. The king shouted orders for Destrion and ran to join Laren in her assessment.

'She's burning up,' Laren whispered as they quickly worked to untie Karigan and gently rest her on the floor. 'Groundmite blood,' she hissed in horror, as part of Karigans' leg became visible through the ruined bandages. One of the weapons tried to lead the trembling Condor away, but he would not budge from his position next to his rider. 'It's ok, boy,' she reassured him. He allowed himself to be moved to a more suitable location.

Destrion arrived promptly and took one look at Karigan. 'Get her into the healing quarters, now!' he ordered, and six weapons picked her up and swiftly followed him. Laren and Zachary were not far behind.

Laren was struck with the look on her monarchs face; she had never seen him so worried before and when he looked down at her, the anguish in his expression shocked her to the core. She had conjectured but never actually believed her intuition about the King and rider. But that did not matter now.

'It looks like she had a brush with a ground mite,' Destrion called back to them. 'The blood from its belly, where she undoubtedly cut it, has fallen onto her skin. It is toxic in the human blood and by the state of her legs she has had quite a significant exposure. Now, I must ask you to wait outside Sire; if I am unable to work quickly within the next candle-mark or so then I'm afraid there will be little hope for her.'


	4. Chapter 4

**Chapter 4: Just another visitor**

A day had passed. Another day of strain as the riders awaited news of their most beloved sister. It had been three days since Karigan's return and although Master Destrion had worked his magic and she was alive, the fever was worsening. Laren wasn't sure if she would make it through the night. A rider had been sent to Corsa almost immediately after her wild entry to request Stevic's urgent presence. Whether he would make it in time to say goodbye to his only daughter was largely thought, although not said, to be unlikely.

Laren was screaming inside her head. She felt useless, standing next to the king, hearing the complaints of his citizens. The weary life of a councilor had never seemed so poignant; to serve the kingdom at all costs, even if that cost was the absence from a good friend's deathbed.

Suddenly, a murmur swept through the crowd. Almost instantly the crowd parted down the middle as a tall man walked purposefully to the dais. The king quickly stood to his feet as the man bowed slightly.

"Hail, Firebrand."

"You have come," the king returned simply. Straightening, the king announced that the audience was concluded for the day, much to the dismay of the many citizens wanting their troubles to be heard.

"I believe we have not been introduced."

The Eletian gave a single nod. "I am called Somial."

"We had thought you might have appeared earlier," the king replied sharply, as they headed to the healing chambers.

"We are not so naïve of this situation as you may think. We have been monitoring the Galadheon from the moment she was wounded and the prince has decided that she is now in need of our assistance."

The king nodded his thanks. "You will find her in here. Master Destrion will be with you shortly."

The Eletian nodded and entered the room, where he remained until the light had all but disappeared from the sky.

Finally, he emerged and came over to speak to Laren, who had remained outside the door at the king's request. She stood.

Although Somial appeared no different, Laren had the feeling that weariness lay heavy on his shoulders as he battled to save their only remaining hope against Mornhaven.

"She rests," he replied simply to her unspoken query, to which Laren sagged in relief. "Then she will live," Laren stated.

"For the moment," came the eletian's chilling reply.

With that, he quietly left to speak with the king. Laren entered Karigan's room determined to see for herself that her rider was healing. Karigan slept peacefully, the moans and spasms that had been her constant companion for the last three days all but a memory. Her leg was freshly bandaged and a calm, healing scent lingered in the air.

* * * * *

Karigan walked slowly around the edge of the horse pasture. She was finally allowed outside the confines of the infernal healing house. Never before had she felt so glad to have the breeze caress her skin and the warmth of the sun beat down upon her back. She stopped walking and closed her eyes, feeling the calm of the day steady her mind.

"A beautiful day such as this is a good reason to fight to live."

Karigan's eyes opened in surprise and she looked up to find her friend leaning casually against the rails.

"Somial," she cried. He laughed in response.

"It has been a while, youngling," he replied warmly, pulling her into a gentle embrace.

"How did you know I was in trouble," she asked, as they began to circle the field together.

"We have our ways, little human. Besides you are far too important in the future of both of our kinds to be unguarded."

"You have been watching me!" she asked in surprise.

"Of course, and if we had not you would be in a far worse shape."

She stopped. She stared into his eyes with a serious expression on her face. "And I cannot thank you enough for saving me Somial. Without you, I would be dead. If I can do anything to repay you, please let me know."

Somial shook his head solemnly. "Karigan, the question of our existence lies on your shoulders. Without you, there is no hope. We will come to your aid anytime that you require it, for if you succeed, the whole of civilization will owe you a debt that can never be repaid. Do not think you owe the Eletians for healing you."

Karigan turned the words over in her mind.

"What do I do, Somial?" she asked quietly.

He was silent for a long time.

"I cannot tell you the path to take Karigan, for you must travel it alone. However, I can tell you that the prince foresaw Mornhaven's return will not be as immediate as we first suspected. I would suggest that you finish your training with the arms master, at which point it would be best for you to receive further instruction from us."

His calmly spoken words sent a thrill of dread and excitement through her. To learn from the Eletian's was an honour words could not describe. But Mornhaven would come soon after and she was not ready to face him. She was terrified and truly did not believe any amount of training could possibly give her an advantage over him.

But I won't let him win, she thought fiercely. If I fail, then I fail my father, my friends and…my king.

With that last thought lingering in her mind, strengthening her resolve and paining her heart, Somial led her back towards the infirmary to rest her weary body.


End file.
